A Tarnished Reputation
by Alien Outcast
Summary: This is a story of looking deeper into Cole's character. And by doing this, I created a love story with him and the lady he mentioned he knew from the bank, and how she helps him. It's not a MARY SUE! I also didn't change nething in the story, just added
1. Back From the War

Author's Note: Just so everyone knows this, this is NOT Mary Sue! I do write them, but never post them on FF.net. I wanted to go in depth in Cole's character, and I feel a romantic relationship shows a lot about a person. As for the girl, there wasn't a lot to choose from. Cole mentioned a girl from the bank, so I figured I'd use her, but I'd have to start from scratch. 

  


P.S. Chapters are short. Sorry, it's just my thing.

  


A Tarnished Reputation

by: Alien Outcast

  


  


  


  


Cole sneaked into the house through the back door. He had used it countless times when he was a kid.

  


It was dark, which was good, but it had taken him too long at his farm to get here before the sun had come down. Oh, well. It was best this way. Dark and quiet. No one would know a thing.

  


Cole climbed the staircase, skipping the fifth stair and remembering when it had squeaked on him when he was 15, and had been caught.

  


When he reached the end of the stairs, he continued down the long hallway, counting the doors as he went. He stopped at the fourth room on the left. Praying that this was still the right room, Cole slowly opened the door and walked in.

  


  


Sandy heard someone approach her room. Thinking it was one of her parents, she shut her eyes, not feeling like talking at the moment. She heard her door quietly creak open, and then soft footsteps on her carpet. He was right beside her bed, and she knew that he had knelt down, and was looking at her face.

  


"Sandy?" she heard an all too familiar voice whisper. She opened her eyes, and had to struggle not to scream in shock.

  


"Cole?!" she whispered in her southern accent. Her mouth gaped open as she saw her childhood sweetheart kneeling beside her bed. The bed that they had lain together so many times before. 

  


He looked different then she had remembered. His hair was sun-bleached blond, instead of the darker brown, and his eyes had lost the playfullness that they once had held.

  


"Yeah, honey. It's me." he replied, staring at her.

  


Sandy quickly embraced him, and he was so glad to be in her arms again, a tear escaped from his eyes.

  


When she finally let him go, she said, "I was so scared you wouldn't come back! I thought those damn Yankees would have skinned you alive!"

  


Cole let out a grin, and said, "Aw, come on. Thanks for the vote of confidence." trying to hide his sadness.

  


"Oh, Cole, I'm sorry." She lowered her head to give him a soft kiss on the lips.

  


When Sandy went to pull away, Cole wrapped his arms around her waist, pressed his lips to hers, and wondered why he had to fight to keep the tears back.

  


The passion of the kiss took Sandy by shock, making her wonder just how bad the war really was. Usually he was playfull and frisky, but something was wrong tonight, and she didn't mind helping him forget.

  


Cole climbed onto the bed, laying on top of her. He continued to kiss her as his cool hands slowly shoved her straps of her nightgown off of her shoulders, making her shiver.

  


Sandy lifted her hips to help him push the nighty the rest of the way down.

  


As he put his mouth to her breast, she whispered, "Oh god, I missed you Cole!" The next thing she knew, his mouth had left her breast, and was placed smartly on her mouth. Now she started to get mad. 

  


_What the hell?! I can't even talk now?_

  


But those thoughts quickly vanished when she felt his fingers slide down below her bellybutton. 

Her eyes flew open at this, and she really started to worry. Cole had never been much for foreplay, and she had never cared since she was immediately ready for him when he kissed her.

  


As she neared her peak, she tried to grasp ahold of him. But he had leaned back out of her reach, leaving her with nothing to hold onto except for the sheets. When she had climaxed, he leaned back on his knees and took off his shirt; throwing it somewhere on the floor.

  


When he turned back, he found Sandy unbuttoning his pants, wanting to return the favor. Cole stilled her with his hands.

  


_Another shock for tonight_. _This is too much_.

  


Cole laid back down on top of her, placing her hands above her head. Oh, she didn't like this. Sandy tried to free her hands, but he held them firmly in place. What was wrong with him? Why wouldn't he let her touch him?

  


The next article of clothing to touch the floor was Cole's pants. But when he turned around, he found Sandy's hands on his shoulders, pushing him down onto the bed, to where she was on top. She tried to straddle him, but he turned them back over before she could get a leg on each side.

  


Now thoroughly confused, Sandy wrapped her slinder arms around Cole's neck as they started into an agonizing slow rhythm. Cole was paying so much more attention to her, then the times before. It's not that she didn't like it (she definitely liked it), it was just such a total change for him. It was like he was trying to prove something. To her? To himself? She only had a vague idea.

  


When they both reached their climax, Cole buried his face into her shoulder to keep from crying out. And she felt his back shudder, but when the last waves of pleasure escaped them, she realized that his back still shook from beneath her hands. 

  


And that's when she felt the tears fall on the crook of her neck. He finally stopped holding back the guttural crys, and she placed her hand on the back of his head and held him, listening to his quiet sobs.

  


When Cole had quieted, she hugged him as hard as she could muster, then dropped back onto her pillow to look him in the eyes. They were red, and she could see the embarassment in them. 

  


He went to turn his head to the side, to escape her gaze, but she put her hand on his cheek, forcing him to look at her. "Cole," she began. "I will always love you." He started to speak, but she placed a slender finger on his lips. "I don't care if you don't feel the same way. But I want you to know that I will always be here for you. Whatever your feelings are of me. I'll always help you." 

  


Cole had a bad reputation with the ladies, but the only reason Sandy had ever let him do things to her that were usually saved for the wedding night, was because she truly loved him; whether or not he recipricated those feelings. He did come to her more times than any other girl, but that was just because she was his favorite. Wasn't she?

  


His gaze burned into hers as he tried to make the words come out. But he couldn't. He had already damaged his pride by crying. If he was to say it, it wouldn't be tonight. So instead, he forced himself to move out of her arms.

  


But she pulled him back down. "Wait." she pleaded, hoping her desperation didn't show through her voice. "Stay with me. Lay with me, just for a little while."

  


Glad for an excuse, he laid back down and gathered her in his arms. Just like the old times.

  


  


  


  



	2. Hanging Day

Ch. 2: Hanging Day

  


Sandy was led into a small room; with cold, steel bars making three even smaller cubicals for prisoners. The sherriff walked out without saying a word, leaving Sandy standing by herself with no clue what to say.

  


She gazed at Cole for a minute. His head was between his knees, and his hands resting on the back of his neck. She had to fight the tears when she saw that his wrists were shackled (no doubt by insists of the Pinkerton men).

  


"Cole?" Her voice broke as she spoke; scared to death that this would be the last time she would talk to him.

  


Cole's head shot up at the sound of another voice. "What are you doing here?" he reprimanded, but Sandy couldn't help but notice the look of relief cross his face.

  


Sandy stood straighter, lifting her chin (hoping she might gain confidence), and replied bravely, "To see goodbye." Her eyes started to tear up, but she held them back, and she thanked God that he didn't notice.

  


Cole stood up from the cold bench, and forced himself to walk slowly to her instead running. He then clasped his hands onto the metal bars as Sandy walked closer to the cell.

  


"I . .I had to see you before . . ." Damn! She was losing her composure.

  


Cole lifted his hand, making the shackles clang against the bars, and lifted her chin. Sandy suddenly felt embarassed under his gaze, seeming like he was inspecting her, trying to find something written on her face. She blushed at this, causing Cole to give a small, sad smile. Sandy returned the favor, but this act caused the dam to break, allowing the tears to cascade down her cheeks.

  


Seeing this, Cole leaned towards the bars, bringing her lips nearer as well, and kissed her softly on the lips.

  


  


  


It was sweltering the day of the hanging, and Cole could feel it bearing down on him.

  


_Well, at least they're not burning me at the stake_. he thought grimly as he tried to keep as much dignity as was allowed when you were being marched up to the gallows.

  


Sandy watched bravely as the love of her life walked proudly to his death. She hadn't realized how tight she was gripping her fan until she looked down to see that her knuckles were white. Forcing herself to release her grip a bit, Sandy strained her neck to keep Cole in view. When she finally moved around a lady that wore a huge hat and seven little children clinging to her, she had to keep from gasping. The noose was around Cole's neck, and his eyes were locked onto hers.

  


  


She looked so frightened, that Cole wanted to hold her in his arms and tell her it was all right. But of course, one obsticle stood in the way of letting him do what he wished; which made him madder than hell. That's probably why he spat in the old general's face; that and his pride.

  


When Cole looked back at Sandy, he found that she had that sad little smile on her face. And suddenly, he wished she wasn't there; wasn't seeing him like this; wasn't watching him die.

  


  


Sandy saw the change of emotion on his face as the inevitable grew closer. She was trying to figure out what he was thinking, when she saw his head snap up to look in the distance. Soon, she heard what he had heard; the sound of hooves pounding on the dirt road.

  


As Sandy ran for safety, she smiled and knew he would live.


	3. Inside Information

Ch. 3: Inside Information

  


  


  


"I know a girl at the bank." Cole had said to the gang. But what they didn't know, was just how well he knew Sandy. They thought he was just another guy who couldn't hold a relationship like a water bucket full of holes, and screwed fellas in Tulsa. He knew they had just been joking with that little comment, but it had still hurt his ego (which is why he shut the hell up about Zee).

  


The heat reminded Cole of the day he was nearly hanged. He wiped at his forehead, placed his hat back atop his head, and walked up the two stairs that led to the bank. Cole had no doubts that Sandy would help them, but he was afraid anyway. Afraid that she might turn away from him when the reality of who he really was came back and hit her in the ass. He'd killed two Pinkerton Dectives. Sure it was in retaliation for hitting Jimmy, but the cruel facts were there; he'd killed in cold blood. Hell, he'd killed in cold blood so many times he couldn't count. But of course, they never said it was cold blood when you were fighting in a war. How wrong they were.

  


Cole opened the door and walked into Liberty's bank. No one had even looked up. This job would be easy.

  


He casually walked in line behind this old guy that Sandy was trying to calm down. He smirked, watching her try to keep her anger down with the retched old man. 

  


"Please Mr. Tucker!" Sandy pleaded, exhasperated. "I'm sorry, but you have no more money in the bank. We could give you a loan . . ."

  


"I don't want no dag gone flippin loan! I don't need one, ya here? Now I'm tellin ya, my money's here, cuz as a matter o' fact, I just put it in last week." he ended proudly.

  


"Yes, you're right Mr. Tucker. But the next day you took it back out!" 

  


  


She was getting a little red in the face, and he found it adorable. But he thought he should step in, and save her from this torture. 

  


"Excuse me, sir?" he cut in, wrapping his arm around the old man's shoulders and leading him away from Sandy.

  


"What do you want?" he snapped.

  


  


Sandy watched as Cole quietly conversed with Old Man Tucker, thinking it impossible when Tucker quietly and contentedly walked away.

  


Cole turned back towards her, and she watched him in awe as he walked towards her with a smug look smeared across his face.

  


"How'd you do that?" she asked

  


"Just a little trick I picked up during the war." he replied. Cole saw the look of confusion on her face, and he definitely didn't want to explain. It brought up too many bad memories. So he changed the subject before she could ask. "Sandy, listen." he began, leaning closer to her so that they wouldn't be overheard. "I need you to give me a list of all the banks the railroad is keeping their money in. Can you do that for me?"

  


Sandy's eyebrows furrowed with confusion, but she decided not to inquire his reasons; especially in public. But she knew whatever he was up to, it couldn't be good.

  


"S . .Sure." she replied unsteadily, hating that she let her fear get the best of her.

  


Cole placed his hand ontop of Sandy's reassuringly, and then slipped it back off before anyone noticed. He couldn't stand the thought of her hanged if she was connected with what him and the gang were about to do.

  


Sandy smiled sweetly at him behind the desk, and then bent down to retrieve a piece of paper and a pencil. She looked around nervously as she wrote, hoping no one would notice what she was up to. 

  


When she was done, Sandy slipped him the paper. Cole whispered "Thanx." as he shoved it into his pocket. He hesitated for an instant, wanting to kiss her goodbye, not knowing if he'd ever see her again. But he forced himself to turn his back and walk confidentally out the bank doors.


	4. Tarnished Reputation

Ch. 4: A Tarnished Reputation

  


  


  


Several years had passed, making it a long, hard journey. Jesse was in Tennessee with his new wife Zee, along with Frank to keep them company. The rest of the gang members had disbandoned, seeing no use to keep going once they realised that they had beaten the railroad. Bob and Comanche Tom had gone off to find gold, and little Jimmy Younger was dead; leaving Cole alone.

  


The last member of the James-Younger Gang dismounted by a small farm. He'd seen the father out in the fields a long ways from the house, and knew from the small-town gossip that the mother had died of malaria a couple years ago.

  


Cole walked along the dirtpath, and opened the rickety gate that was about to fall off it's hinges. He shoved his hands in his pockets, then took them out. As he walked up the stairs, Cole brushed the dirt off of his pants and straightened his shirt. Frowning at himself, he forced himself to stand still before knocking.

  


  


  


Sandy slid the loaf of bread into the oven, then looked up as she heard a sharp series of tapps on her front door. 

  


Standing upright, she walked towards the door while casually brushing the flour off of her hands. Her hand slipped as she grabbed the knob, but she clasped it more firmly and turned.

  


Opening the door half-way, Sandy's mouth gaped open as she saw the weary, ragged-looking man standing on her front porch.

  


The door swung the rest of the way open on it's own, as if a gust of wind had blown it open; but it was a windless day.

  


Cole didn't say anything as he stared at the woman in front of him; the woman he had been wanting to see since the day he walked out of Liberty Bank. 

  


He silently waited for her response to him; anger, sadness, comforting. Even if he wanted to say something to her, he doubted he could; waiting nervously on how she would welcome him back to Liberty. Her reaction all depended on if he would be living a new life from here on end, or go back to the boring farmlife that he had unfortunately known.

  


"Cole." she whispered.

  


"Sandy." he replied solemnly, trying his best to keep his face expressionless.

  


"You're back." she again whispered.

  


Cole simply nodded, afraid his voice might crack.

  


"For good?" she asked, scared to death at what his answer might be.

  


"Depends."

  


Her breath caught in her throat. "Depends on what, Cole?"

  


"Depends on if you'll be here with me. If not, I guess I'll go on down to Tennessee, seein as how there's nothin else here for me. Nothin but you." he added, shocking himself that he added that last part in before he could stop. Damn, he knew he shouldnt've started talking.

  


When Sandy didn't say anything, just stood there with that blasted shocked expression, Cole cleared his throat and bravely kept going. "Heck, I might go on down to Tennessee anyway. It'd be just my luck if we ended up neighbors wit Jesse and Zee. I don't think you'd mind though." This was as much as Cole had ever talked, and what he said didn't even sound like something he would say, even if he was drunk. But he said it. And now, he stood waiting some more, trying hard not to look embarassed.

  


"My father . . ." Sandy began, finally knocked out of her trance.

  


Angry, Cole interrupted. "Your father is dead, Sandy. I saw it in his eyes. He doesn't even know who you are anymore. Doesn't know anyone."

  


"But, still, I gotta take care of him." she protested weakly.

  


Cole let out a non-humorous chuckle. "Repay the favor huh? Is that how it is? Your old man beat the shit out of you, and you decide you have to take care of him?" Overcoming his embarassment, Cole stepped closer to Sandy. "You remember when we was little?" he questioned. "You came ah runnin to me with a fresh welt on your arm, and I was sportin a black eye, and we promised each other we'd get away from all this." 

  


Cole was about to continue, when he abruptly stopped. Tears had started streaming down her face.

  


"I'm sorry Cole." she answered as he welcomed her into his embrace. "I didn't mean what I tried to say. I was just shocked . . . and scared . . .and it's just so hard to let go." she sniffled.

  


Now feeling bad, Cole tightened his arms around Sandy, and loving the excuse to hold her.

  


Finally stepping out of the embrace, Sandy looked up at Cole with a mischievious smile on her face. She sniffed one more time and asked, "So, are we goin to Tennessee or not?"

  


Cole grinned back, knowing that his bad-ass, womanizing reputation was tarnished forever. And he'd never admit it to anybody, but he kind of liked the sound of that. 

  


  


Author's Note: And what an interesting side we see of Cole. I just love working with the silent, mysterious characters! They're so sexy. lol So, do you think that Cole really loves her or is he blinded by his loneliness? You tell me. lol No I'm not gonna ask for a report (although it would be great). I'm actually really proud of this story, and can't believe I got it done so quick. (I'm one of those author's who hardly ever update O.o) But please do review, because I'm really excited with this story, and want to see if you agree with me. 

  


Now I know that there might not be a lot of "Cole lovers" out there (especially when I look at the other fanfics **sniffles** I feel so alone!) But even if you're not found of Cole, hopefully you enjoyed this.


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